


los angeles

by tgrsndshrks



Category: You Me At Six
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-01
Updated: 2013-01-01
Packaged: 2017-11-25 19:46:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/642349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tgrsndshrks/pseuds/tgrsndshrks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>you me at six are recording their new album in LA.</p>
            </blockquote>





	los angeles

Fifteen hours later, the plane lands at LAX.

They're standing at baggage claim, half slumped over into these sad little question marks. Max's is smaller than Josh's, but Josh is so curved over they nearly look the same size. Max looks at him.

“We'll be there soon,” he says drowsily.

 

 

 

 

The apartment came furnished, and it has a view of the Hollywood sign, so Max likes it. Josh doesn't mind it, because the bathroom is nice, and Josh spends a lot of time doing his hair or showering so he likes nice bathrooms. Also, Josh is one of those people who likes his surroundings to be aesthetically pleasing, and fluorescent lighting is all but aesthetically pleasing.

Josh is currently stocking the kitchen with the few food-related things they have right now. There's half a sandwich left over from the airport layover in New York and Max had insisted on saving it. Josh knows Max won't eat it, but he'll throw a Dan-style big gay freakout if Josh gets rid of it. So it stays.

Josh can hear Max go into the living room around the corner, so Josh peeks around the wall. Max is setting up the brand-new Xbox, bent over and plugging things in. Josh blinks. Oh. He figured Max would get going pretty quickly on the Xbox. There would be a lot of Fifa in the near future.

Once Josh is finished, he gets two of the beers from the only six pack in the fridge and takes them over, cracking them open. Max smiles. He likes beer.

Josh chinks the neck of his bottle against Max's without saying anything, because Max will know what they're toasting to.

 

 

 

 

At 5:24 AM, Josh wakes up.

“Fucking jet lag,” he says to his pillow. He hears the toilet flush. Max must have bad jet lag too. “Make tea,” Josh yells, and he hears Max's patting footsteps stop.

“No, you,” Max shouts back, voice sleepy.

“I fuck it up; you do it,” Josh retorts, and Max doesn't reply. He brings him his tea in bed and Josh smiles.

 

 

 

 

Sun is battering down on the balcony. Max looks at Josh and says, “I bet you fifty quid that Dan is tanning right now.” Josh looks back at Max and shakes his head. Josh, too, knows Dan will be tanning. Not worth taking the bet.

The sky over Los Angeles has this smoky veil over it, and it wraps around the skyscrapers and seems to choke everyone in the city. Josh doesn't care for it much. He misses England. Well, not the weather, but he misses England.

Max goes inside once he finishes his beer and Josh listens as Max sighs before dropping his empty bottle in the trash. Josh knows that he could recognize that sigh anywhere, mostly because he can hear a ghost of Max's voice in there. Josh scrolls absently through his Twitter replies. He hears Max turn the Xbox on. He smiles to himself. Recording doesn't start till Monday.

 

 

 

 

The music is loud and Josh is slightly intoxicated. He's more than a few drinks in, illegally, since he's underage in the states. Not that he's paid any attention to that. He hasn't gotten carded, so he's not terribly concerned.

Josh is more preoccupied with the fact that he's shoved up against Max on the middle of the dance floor right now.

Some girl basically backed Josh up into Max and Max is dancing with some other girl and Josh is stupidly uncomfortable right now, even though he should be totally into this. This girl's tits are spilling out of her top and her hair is Hollywood blonde, and she's got her hands high on Josh's thighs. All Josh is really focusing on, though, is the fact that Max's ass is pressed against his own.

Josh looks over his shoulder, noting that Max looks equally bored.

“Let's do shots,” Josh says, so Max nods and they go to the bar.

They do a round of Jagerbombs, and Max gets fucked off Jagerbombs. He takes a beer for the floor and the fresh alcohol is hitting him full force by the time he grabs Josh's hand. Josh looks at him as Max pushes himself up against Josh, grabbing him by the hips and pulling him over.

“I wanna dance,” he slurs.

“Max,” Josh says, but Max doesn't ever hesitate and he's turning around and leaning back into Josh's chest, kind of melting into him, and he rocks his hips and Josh hates that he's enjoying this but he's definitely enjoying this. He steals Max's beer and chugs it, knowing he'll need the alcohol, then he grabs Max's belt loops and pins their bodies together at the hips.

 

 

 

 

“Josh, did anything happen last night?”

Josh gives Max his coffee and turns the bedroom light off.

“No, Max,” he lies. “Nothing happened.”

 

 

 

 

The second time Josh and Max have sex, they're sober.

That's not to say that they aren't under the influence, because they kind of are. Because Max is horny and Josh is in the shower and Max likes the idea of Josh naked, so he just joins him.

They fuck in the shower, and there's nothing romantic about it. Josh just pushes Max into the tile wall and fucks him until he comes all over himself. Josh comes inside Max and Max leaves the shower without washing his hair. They don't even kiss.

They sleep in their separate bedrooms that night wishing the beds weren't so big and empty.

 

 

 

 

After a full week in the studio, Josh is still trying to figure out where the line between “friends who have had sex” ends and “friends with benefits” begins.

Josh figures it blurs after about three instances, which is exactly where he and Max are. So when Max finishes his guitar tracking for the day Josh decides it's best to discuss it. Max walks out of the recording booth, looks at Josh, and says, “I don't want to talk about it.”

Josh figures Max must be wondering the same thing.

Max grabs his fresh pack of cigarettes and goes outside.

Josh spends an hour or so writing lyrics down. Most of them are complete shit, he thinks, but Chris and Matt like them. Dan is in the recording booth trying some drum patterns when Max comes back inside, tossing the now-empty carton in the trash. Josh knows Max never smokes that much.

“Excuse me,” Josh murmurs. He leaves his notebook with Chris and Matt and he goes over to Max. “Are you okay?” he asks.

“You know damn well I'm not okay,” Max says. He looks at Josh and he's got this ring of venom around his eyes that Josh hasn't ever seen before and it scares him. Not in the scream-take kind of scary, the deeply unsettling kind of earthquake-to-the-foundation kind of way. Josh doesn't say anything. Neither does Max. Max leaves again.

 

 

 

 

Josh likes the way Max's back arches off the bed, and the way his chest shudders under his hands, and the way his mouth falls open and he gasps and when his clavicles protrude from his shoulders when he throws his head back.

 

 

 

 

_“i know ur in the recording booth rn but i'm leaving u this txt to tell u u've got a cute bum”_

 

 

 

 

Josh wakes up with a hangover. He drinks enough coffee for three people and Max finally comes stumbling in the front door at about 11:30.

“Fuck,” he says, and Josh looks at him.

“Where've you been?” he asks.

“Fuck off, mum,” Max mumbles, and he flops over in bed and Josh doesn't ask questions.

Max sleeps for a solid three hours.

When he wakes up and sits with Josh on the couch, Josh notices the distinct scent of floral perfume. He looks at Max. Max looks at him.

“What?” Max asks.

“Fuck you,” Josh says. He stands up and rushes out of the room, slamming his bedroom door behind him. When his back hits the bed and he stares at the ceiling, his chest constricts and he chokes out a tearless sob. Why would Max do that? Why would he sleep with someone else – let alone a girl – when he had Josh? Then Josh sort of remembers that he and Max aren't even together. There's no Max and Josh. Just Josh in his room and Max in his, because even when they fuck they never share the bed afterward.

That scares Josh a little bit.

 

 

 

 

When Josh wakes up, the bed is distinctly warm.

He sits up, barely cracking his eyes open when his head floods with ache and his stomach lurches. Fuck. Another hangover.

He stands up and goes to the loo, emptying his stomach before going to Max's room to see if he's in an equally wrecked state.

“Max,” Josh mumbles, but when he opens the door, Max isn't in bed.

Josh sighs. He was probably out with another girl then. There'd been a few at the club last night, where they'd gone out for Dan's birthday. Josh doesn't remember much after their third round of Jagerbombs. He decides he'll go back to bed and try to sleep off a little more of his hangover, but when he gets back to his room, there's someone in his bed.

Oh.

He pads over to the bed, peeking under the covers. Max.

Josh stands there for a moment, just stunned. Max had never slept in the same bed as him before. Josh tries not to think about it. He just lays back down and tries to push himself into Max's arms.

Max wakes up.

“Josh?” he asks drowsily, and Josh peers up at him.

“Hi,” he whispers. Max brushes a hand through his hair.

“I didn't want to leave you in bed alone last night,” Max explains. “You could hardly stand. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

Josh's heart swells a little.

“Well, thank you,” Josh murmurs. “I don't remember last night.”

“Well,” Max says. He shrugs. “Nothing out of the ordinary except for how you tried to suck my dick at the bar.”

“Oh god,” Josh says, burying his face in Max's shirt.

“It was cute,” Max says, and Josh sort of vaguely registers that as the first time Max has called him or anything he's done “cute”. Josh smiles.

“Thank you,” he says again, and this time Max kisses him far too softly. Not that Josh protests to it. It's just a new kind of kiss, and Josh likes it.

 

 

 

 

Josh starts to notice things about Max that he never noticed before Los Angeles. Like how his hair grows in the wrong direction in the front. And how when he shaves he makes odd little faces, and that when he smiles his eyes get all crinkly at the edges.

 

 

 

 

_@joshmeatsix: 5 mile Run done. Chilling on the balcony with @maxmeatsix listening to @travisbarker 's album. What a total vibe_

 

 

 

 

Josh and Max are sat on the couch watching football the first time they hold hands.

Max is kind of leaning on Josh's shoulder anyway, because he's tired and a bit hung over from another “last night”, and also because Josh's shoulder seems like the perfect place to put his head at this very moment. Josh doesn't mind. He just sits there watching the Arsenal game and enjoying Max's company.

Max shifts a bit, and Josh glances down at him. Max sighs. He puts his hand on the back of Josh's. Josh's hand is on his leg. He turns it over so he's palm-to-palm with Max and Max carefully winds up their fingers. Josh smiles at their hands. He wouldn't mind getting used to this.

“You have nice hands,” Max says.

“So do you,” Josh says. “They're calloused. I like that.”

Max looks up at him. God, as if Josh could get any cuter.

“Well,” Max says, and then Max decides that he looks forward to seeing Josh break his all-time cuteness record. That might require a kiss.

 

 

 

 

Josh has mixed feelings about the visit from the Sykes brothers. He likes Oliver's guest vocals but Tom is filming everything and Max keeps flirting with him incessantly and Josh keeps forgetting that Max can do that.

 

 

 

 

When they go to Vegas, Josh picks up the reservations. Max had made them the night before. They're at some hotel a block off the strip and the lady at the counter, who looks about forty, has 80s mall bangs.

“Last name?” she asks. She sounds like a smoker.

“Helyer,” Josh says. She looks at him like he's just spoken an alien language, and then he repeats himself, over-enunciating to mimic an American accent. “Hell-yer.”

The lady nods, then. She presses a few buttons on the touch screen and she says, “One room with a view of the Bellagio light show and one bed.”

Josh blinks.

“Um, yeah,” he says. “I think so. I'm not sure. I- I didn't make the reservation. My roommate did.”

The lady looks at him. He can practically hear her think, yeah, roommate, sure, and Josh swallows. She sighs.

“Here,” she says, giving him a few pamphlets and a card with the door keys in it. “You're in room 529. If you need anything there's a phone in the room and there's a button to call the front desk.” She gives him this smile and Josh notices her lipstick is feathering at the corners.

“Thanks,” Josh says. He takes his bag and drags it back over to where Max is sifting through tourist pamphlets.

“Are we good?” Max asks.

“One bed?” Josh replies. Max bites his lip.

“Well it's cheaper,” he says, “and I didn't think you'd mind sharing a bed.”

Josh smiles weakly. No, he certainly wouldn't mind sharing a bed.

 

 

 

 

Josh wakes up with a hangover, but that's to be expected. He kind of curls up in bed a little bit, noticing that he's curling his body around Max. Oh. His arms are wrapped around Max's waist, their bodies tight together and Josh smiles, his eyes still closed. He nuzzles forward with his nose until he finds the back of Max's neck and kisses, right above the tattoo there. He kisses there for a minute or so, just keeping his lips pressed there and moving them up or down his spine a bit a few times, until Max stirs awake.

He doesn't say anything, just kind of turns over in Josh's arms until they're face-to-face and then Josh kisses him. Max holds Josh's cheek, interlocking their lips. Josh holds tight to Max's waist. He doesn't intend to let go of him, at least not for the remainder of the morning. Once Max decides he's kissed Josh enough for the time being, he puts his hand on Josh's waist and holds onto that little bit of tummy right there above his boxers, smiling into Josh's chest.

“Hi,” Max says to Josh's skin.

“Hi,” Josh says to the top of Max's head.

“Mmm,” Max says, and he kisses Josh's sternum. “You have morning wood.”

Josh furrows his eyebrows. Oh. He does. He bites his lip. “Sorry,” he whispers.

Max doesn't say anything. He just dives under the covers and starts sucking him off, and Josh has never had a morning blowjob before and after about thirty seconds of Max bobbing on his dick Josh says, “Max, wait.”

Max peers up from under the covers. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing,” Josh says. “I. I just. I want to... make love to you.”

They kind of look at each other for a moment and they've never made love before, just fucked or maybe had sex. Max doesn't say anything. He just crawls back up, holding Josh's neck, and Josh eases Max's hips down.

It's pretty quiet at first. Max leans down and Josh holds Max's thighs, kind of moving him slowly as Max kisses on his neck. It's all slow and sweet and Max's skin is particularly soft and Josh notices that the curtains are open but they're on one of the top floors so it doesn't matter, it just makes the pale skin on Max's body kind of glow a little.

Max moans softly, rocking his hips a little different. Josh just kind of lets Max move how he wants to, running his hands over his ass. Max's skin is all soft. Josh reaches around to work Max's cock slowly, at the same pace his hips are going, and Max moans again.

“Josh,” he whimpers. “Babe.”

It's the first time Max has ever called Josh babe or baby or anything remotely like that and Josh just rolls over on top of him, hitching Max's legs up and over his shoulders and Max gasps, either out of surprise or because Josh can tell he's pressed into his spot.

“Josh,” he says again.

Josh rocks his hips into Max's, tucking his head in his neck and kissing and licking and Max whimpers. He grabs at Josh's hips, trying to get him to slow down, to stop going at his spot so fast, but Josh doesn't stop. He slows a bit, maybe just to fuck him deeper, and after a few more thrusts like that Max just kind of cums all over himself. Josh pulls out and Max's wanks him off and they kiss and when Josh cums he moans against Max's mouth and Max bites Josh's bottom lip and it's basically the hottest thing ever.

Max goes a little limp. Josh just kind of lays on top of him, not even caring about the way their bodies are sticking together now. He kisses Max's skin. He's not sure where the skin he's kissing is, but he doesn't care.

“I love you,” Max says.

Josh's lips still and he has to breathe manually for a few seconds.

“I love you too,” Josh says.

 

 

 

 

Max and Josh share the bed when they get back to their apartment in LA, and sometimes, when Max isn't paying attention, Josh still steals these little looks at him like he used to back when they weren't holding hands in public.


End file.
